Luis Manuel Otero will auction works in support of the Independent Cuban press

Madrid, Spain.- Cuban artist and political prisoner Luis Manuel Otero Alcántara will auction of several of his works as a symbolic gesture of support for the independent press of the island, at an especially critical moment for the alternative media ecosystem. This action arises in response to the recent temporary suspension of the United States International Aid programs, which has left numerous cultural means and projects without financing for at least 90 days.

From your cell, Otero Alcántara It promotes this initiative with the objective of contributing to the sustainability of free journalism in Cuba, a sector historically harassed by state censorship, the criminalization of the information exercise and the shortage of resources.

The works that will be auctioned are part of the series Schrödinger’s carbon portraita piece conceived in 2022 that explores, from prison, and through graphic representations of individual days, the perception of time and the emotional resistance of those who are deprived of liberty for political reasons.

The work team that manages the projects of the artivist since its imprisonment has supported the auction, convinced that this act can not only offer financial support to journalists in trouble, but also to reaffirm the importance of solidarity between different sectors of Cuban civil society against repression.

The financial situation of the alternative media has aggravated after the freezing of funds from international cooperation. The measure, promoted by the Trump administration as part of a global review policy of its assistance programs, has affected not only Cuban independent journalists, but also to humanitarian initiatives in several regions of the world.

Otero Alcántara, arrested in July 2021 and sentenced in May 2022 to five years in prison, has been declared “prisoner of consciousness” by Amnesty International. In February 2024, a request for probation was denied, despite repeated demands for liberation by international human rights organizations. In 2021 it was included among the 100 most influential personalities in the world by the magazine Timeand in 2024 he received the RAFTO HUMAN RIGHTS Award In Norway.